"The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: “Charity is prescribed for each descendant of Adam every day the sun rises.” He was then asked: “From what do we give charity every day?” The Prophet answered: “The doors of goodness are many…enjoining good, forbidding evil, removing harm from the road, listening to the deaf, leading the blind, guiding one to the object of his need, hurrying with the strength of one’s legs to one in sorrow who is asking for help, and supporting the feeble with the strength of one’s arms–all of these are charity prescribed for you.” He also said: “Your smile for your brother is charity.” – Fiqh-us-Sunnah, Volume 3, Number 98

Doesn’t get much easier than that.

Just because you are fasting doesn’t mean that smiling will kill you."

"As a little Palestinian boy in the United Arab Emirates, Ramadan was always a fun time for me. For starters, 15 days prior to the holy month, the young boys and girls would tour the neighborhood knocking doors and asking for treats. This is known as “Haq Al Lylah”. Some families would give us food, others candy and drinks, and few would give us cash. This is like that country’s Halloween without all the ghosts and the creeps. "

"It probably has happened to all of us: that random act of kindness by someone, better yet, by someone who’s a total stranger. We might have done it to others numerous times, consciously or unconsciously, be it with a smile, a kind word, a considerate act or any other thing that showed another person, even if you don’t know their names, that you see the humanity in them, void of any differences, and you showed them the humanity in you through that simple act of compassion.

Live and learn and experience, throughout your life, says our Moroccan muse:

"I remember being 11 years old, living in New England. The winters were long and snowy, and all my friends knew how to ski. But not me. Why don't we send you for ski lessons, my mother said. No, I said. I can't, I said. But why? my mother asked. Because I'm too old, I replied.

On the 'other side of Ramadan', a more realistic list of Ramadan 'flavor's' or spiritual lessons might include: Extravagance, Decadence, Exploitation; Revelry; Laziness...

"Today is the first day of Ramadan, and probably a rare occasion where most — if not all — Muslim countries miraculously agreed that it would be on the 1st of August (correct me if I am wrong), so let’s hope it ends on the same date as well. At least for the first time ever, I would not have to hear sarcastic comments from a Westerner fresh off the boat regarding the whole moon calculation thing."